Posts Tagged wholesale scams
Verify Wholesalers and Drop Shippers with Simple Online Tools
Posted by Andrea in Drop Shipping, Home Based Business, Wholesale, eBusiness on June 12th, 2009
Research is the corner stone of good business. Every business owner should know how to research extensively before they go ahead and open up shop. Researching a drop shipper or a wholesaler is the only way you will get out of the process of finding one without being scammed for money, sadly.
Before you decide on a drop shipper or a wholesaler gather a list of prospects and take to Google. Search the names of the companies first and foremost. A bad company will likely have complaints lodged against them somewhere on the internet. Add in the word “scam” to the end of the business name and see if anything comes up. If nothing comes up you might have a decent company so put it on a short list. Any company that comes up with more than one complaint should probably be axed from your list.
Once you have a short list check the phone numbers and contact information. The contact information should be directly linked to the company name. Look for e-mail address that end in @companyname.com or @companyname.net. These e-mail address endings mean that that company has it’s own e-mail provider or entity. It is a very good sign of a legitimate business. A Gmail account or a Hotmail account means your mail is going to a personal e-mail address. It is a sign of a bad business.
Once you have that all figured out further check out the companies using Mapquest or Google Earth. If you are familiar with the area you should be able to tell whether or not the business is in a commercial part of a town. If you are not familiar with the company you can use Google Earth to hone in on the address. You want to see a commercial district or a warehouse district. If you hone in on an area that looks completely residential or rural you are probably looking at a scam. A wholesaler or a drop shipper will not be working out of a residential home or a residential area if they are legitimate. You want to see a big building, normally, the uglier the building the better in this case.
Call and speak to someone directly when you think you’ve found a good company. Consider the time zone you are calling and call during their regular business hours. Between 10am-4pm should be the time frame you are aiming for. Someone should be there to answer your phone call at that time. If no one picks up you need to further investigate the company.
Found a New Wholesale Source? Proceed With Caution!
Posted by Andrea in Bulk Drop Shipping, Home Based Business, Wholesale, Wholesale Sources, eBusiness on June 12th, 2009
There are thousands of wholesalers on the internet. They all promise to deliver great quality wholesale goods for a great price so that you can resell them. While many of the wholesalers out there are legitimate businesses there are some that are scams. In order for your business to get off the ground you need to be able to spot a legitimate business and a scam or “cover” business.
A legitimate business will offer contact information and will answer the phone when you call. Before you call check the number with a reverse directory. A legitimate business will have a business line and you should be able to get the companies name when you check a reverse directory. If the reverse directory suggests the number is a cellular phone number you should begin to worry. Try calling during regular business hours. If you receive a voice mail message you can leave a message. If you don’t receive a call back it should raise a red flag.
Legitimate businesses should also be willing to send you samples of the product you are interested in for you to take a look. A company that is a true wholesaler will have products in stock and is almost always more than willing to send out a sample product. If the company says they can not send a sample of the product you are looking at you should look for another wholesaler.
A true wholesaler will always ask for your business tax ID number or your reseller’s license. They are in the business of doing business with real businesses not random consumers. A company that does not ask for the information is likely not on the up-and-up.
Finally legitimate wholesalers will almost always accept credit cards. If a wholesaler is asking for a wire transfer instead of a credit card payment you should dig very deeply into the company. Wire transfers are commonly used by scammers because once the money goes it is gone for good and tracing the person is difficult.
While there may be a few exceptions to the rule a wholesaler that is truly in the business of wholesale goods will behave like any legitimate business. Remember to trust your instincts. If you feel that a business is shady do your research and dig around about them. You have a right to know what is going on.
Ecommerce Wholesale Drop Ship Suppliers - Are They Reliable?
Posted by Andrea in Bulk Drop Shipping, Drop Shipping, Home Based Business, Wholesale Sources, eBusiness on June 11th, 2009
The internet is packed to the brim with horrid tales of drop shipping problems. Looking around quickly on some forums I found several people who have made the mistake of trusting a drop shipper who was only interested in getting their money and less than enthusiastic when it came to customer service. Sadly these stories are not the exception, they are the rule. The problem that many of these people are facing has to do with the size of their account. A small business owner is considered “small potatoes” to a drop shipper and thus they do not receive the same customer service that a large account holder would.
Large accounts (those that order a large volume of product) will find that drop shippers will bend over backwards to help them. In the end a drop shipper is getting paid more from large accounts and thus they are more willing to do good business with them than they are with small-time buyers. It’s sad and disgusting, I know, but it is the truth.
The drop shippers out there that do want to do business with a smaller operation and offer service are often fly by night companies that have a short life spans. Many drop shippers begin their operation without a solid business plan in place and thus are gone in six to eighteen months. While you might get several good months of service from the company you will have to find another shipper when they fall out of the shipping race.
So how do you find a good drop shipper as a small business? Well, that is sort of like the riddle of the Sphinx. You have to call around a lot and repeatedly call back to ask questions. If you have found a business that is willing to answer questions more than once you are onto a pretty good shipper.
Next you need to take to the internet and read up on the company. You can often find out if a company is registered with the BBB and how long they have been in business online quickly. If there is information about the company dating back 5 or more years you are onto a really solid prospect? If you have a company that has only been in business for a year or who has only been using their acquired name for one year you might want to walk away. Don’t get me wrong, not all shippers who are new are out to get your money and kill your business and livelihood but with the army of bad drop shippers out there you are better off looking for an older company. You wouldn’t gamble away your entire life savings on a long shot horse at the races so there is no need to do it with a drop shipper.
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